CHAPTER 9: Mulder and Tuna Ghost

Okay, the tapioca pudding, blazing inferno, insidious government plots, DATR, and Seether aren't in THIS chapter. I decided at the last minute to throw this chapter in. Hope you enjoy! I own naught.

Mulder and Scully sat in the Impala, watching the front of Zim's house. So far, the night had been uneventful, and the agents sat drinking quite possibly the worst coffee they had ever had the misfortune of consuming, thanks to Mulder taking a trip to a restaurant called the Chickey Lickey.

"Is it just me, Scully," Mulder said with a slight smile, "Or does even the coffee in this town hint of evil influence?" Scully simply looked at him with a sarcastic look. Suddenly, Mulder's watch began beeping. "I gotta go." He said, turning off the alarm. "You going to be okay here?"

"Yeah…" Scully sighed. "I don't think anything's going to happen tonight. If it does, I'll call your cell."

"You want a ride?" Scully asked.

"No," Mulder replied, getting out of the car. "I could use the fresh air." Scully nodded. She knew that this was Mulder's way of saying that whoever it was that he was supposed to meet wanted him to come alone.

"Alright. Be careful, Mulder." Scully said.

"You too." Mulder said. He closed the car door, and leaned in through the window. "And if Zim wants to give you a ride in his shiny new spaceship, say no."

"Very funny, Mulder." Scully said dryly.

"I thought so." Mulder smiled. "I'll be back in a couple hours." With that, Mulder walked off into the night.

Iamtheproductofanalien/humanhybridizationexperiment

Mulder sat on a bench, overlooking the pond in the city park. The light of the nearly full moon shimmered on the surface of the dark water as Mulder waited.

"Beautiful night, isn't it?" A woman's voice said. Mulder looked to his right to see a woman step from the shadows. As she drew closer, Mulder could see that she was a tall, slim woman with short, spikey hair. She wore a long, feathered earring in one ear, and a long black coat. In short, she looked like the living embodiment of the mid 1980's punk scene. The fact that she appeared to be in her mid-thirties made Mulder wonder if indeed she was. "Agent Mulder." She said respectfully and with a little awe as she sat next to him.

"You know me?" Mulder asked. She took off her hornrimmed glasses and smiled.

"We know of you, Agent Mulder." She replied. "Your crusade for the truth has made you a bit of a rockstar in certain circles.

"Well your admiration is appreciated." Mulder said half cynically, half enjoying the attention. "And you are…"

"Call me Agent Tuna Ghost." She replied.

"Agent…Tuna Ghost?" Mulder asked. She smiled.

"In the Swollen Eyeball Network, we're given codenames that are based on our first cases. Our leader, Darkbooty, worked on uncovering information on the butt-shaped structure on mercury. Dib did some research on the mothman incident."

"So he's Agent Mothman." Mulder stated.

"Exactly."

"But I still don't get…" Mulder began.

"1990…" Agent Tuna Ghost said with a nod. "Six tuna fishing boats pulled down by some unseen force. Only two survivors, Agent Mulder. What they spoke of was…unbelievable."

"You're not saying…" Mulder said incredulously. The woman smiled again.

"Oh, but I am. An entire school of spectral tuna, avenging the deaths of their fishy brethren." She sighed. "But that's a story for another time. You wanted information."

"Yeah." Mulder said. "I need to know what your group knows about Dib, and about Zim."

"Dib is…he's a kid." Tuna Ghost said. "A bright one yes, but a kid nonetheless. Kids have imagination. Kids make mistakes."

"So you don't believe that Zim is an extraterrestrial?" Mulder asked.

"You notice, I never said that." Tuna Ghost replied. "Then again, it's not my case."

"Well, what is your opinion on the matter exactly, Agent…Tuna Ghost?" Mulder asked.

"The Swollen Eyeball Network is under the assumption that Dib is incorrect in his investigation of the Zim matter." She said as if rehearsed. "Furthermore, the SEN has given considerable thought to the dismissal of Agent Mothman from the network." She looked at Mulder stoically.

"You don't seem too sure about the Network's standing on this." Mulder said. Tuna Ghost smiled a little.

"You are good." She said. She stood up, and looked out over the pond.

"So you're saying you believe Dib?" Mulder asked, standing as well.

"Let's just say…I've seen stranger." She said, still looking out over the pond. "But I was just sent to tell you what the Network thinks." She looked over at Mulder. "It was a real pleasure to meet you, Agent Mulder. I hope we meet again some day." With that, Agent Tuna Ghost walked off into the night.

Yes, this is the chapter that's taken me three days to write. Don't ask, it's been a regular turd of a week. I promise to try to get another chapter up in the next couple of days. And that one will probably have the inferno, the tapioca, etc, etc. So keep it tuned in here, loyal readers. Until next time, I bid you a fond cheerio.